1

Ignition hazards from electrical and mechanical faults from conveyor/transport

equipment

2

Lighting or hot spots caused by maintenance operations

3

The fuel hazards from the highly combustible nature of polystyrene and

polyurethane foams, wooden pallets and plastic wrapping. The low humidity

levels of cold stores further exacerbate the heat release rate of burning materials

1

High-bay storage racking can also affect the airflow and impede the detection and response to a fire event.

2

The extreme temperatures of refrigerated storage facilities are a primary challenge to

detecting a cold store fire as most forms of detection are not designed to operate in harsh climatic environments.

3

High airflows created by blast chiller units and condensation (ice formation within the facility) can impede the operation of conventional “passive” detectors. Internationally recognized fire standards further state, that unless specified, smoke detectors should not be installed if the operating temperature is below 0°C (NFPA 721).

1

Water suppression i.e. sprinklers or other water based systems could be used in warehouse applications, however, they may be ineffective in cold storage environments. Reasons being that in the event of a fire, the activation of water can create environmental and occupational hazards, such as ice formation (black ice*).

2

The release of water can also generate large amounts of dense fog, causing reduced visibility which may impede an appropriate fire brigade response.

3

Contaminates within the sprinkler pipe work must be considered

1

To minimize damage and loss in cold stores, a fire must be detected at a very early stage. VESDA’s reliable, very early warning minimizes the likelihood of product loss (either from fire and/or contamination), facility damage and operational downtime.

2

VESDA detectors can reliably detect smoke samples to a minimum temperature of -20°  C(-18° F) and 0° C(-32° F) however, it is recommended that the air sample enters the detector at a temperature of 0° C(-32° F)

3

Testing and maintenance is simplified by utilising measured tests, to measure actual system performance in a real smoke environment.  No towers, no access equipment should be required, as all electronics (VESDA) detectors should be installed in accessible area’s!

4

With an extensive event log, we can measure smoke trends and identify and/orovercome ambient transient conditions.

5

All pipe work designs can be verified using the VESDA Sampling Pipe Modeling Program – ASPIRETM, before sample holes are drilled This program illustrates the significance of various parameters in an aspirating smoke detection, so that the most appropriate design can be applied!